In article ,
"Irv Finkleman" wrote:

will be moving to a senior's
residence where I will have a balcony to work from.

Irv-

Go ahead and try the loop. At least you will be on the air, and you may
be surprised how well it works.

I once lived in an apartment where a previous resident had installed a
trucker's mirror antenna mount on the metal balcony rail. I used it
with mobile whips to get on HF. The metal rail worked as a ground
plane, and my TS-690S built-in tuner was able to match it.

You might also consider dipoles made from mobile whips. I have had good
luck, especially on higher bands. I currently have an "Octopus" antenna
made from four sets of mobile whips fed in parallel. It might not fit
on your balcony, but fits inside my attic. (The Octopus was published
in the December, 2007, issue of QST.)

73,
Fred
K4DII